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Chapter 85 Completely powerless (Fifth update)

Lin Quan gasped in shock, his face filled with horror.

Moreover, as the sun and moon began to overlap, an indescribable chilling aura began to quietly spread.

It was as if the yang energy of the entire world was suppressed by an invisible force at this moment, while the yin energy hidden deep in the earth and shadows began to rise and become active.

The sky darkened visibly, the temperature seemed to drop, and even the wind blowing through the courtyard carried a biting chill.

Chen Yue felt a chill run down his spine, instantly recalling the information he had extracted from the previous interrogation: blood sacrifices must be performed under specific seasons and celestial phenomena.

It turns out that what the Divine Flame Sect and the Netherworld Palace were waiting for was this once-in-a-century total solar eclipse!

They were able to accurately predict that this celestial phenomenon would be visible in this area, and use that as the time to launch the blood sacrifice. No wonder they had been lying in wait all this time!

The celestial signs have appeared, and the blood sacrifice is likely to begin soon. Youlin County is about to become a hell on earth!

Chen Yue abruptly lowered his head, looking again at Lin Quan, whose face was deathly pale and who was also terrified by the celestial phenomenon: "Master Lin, the celestial phenomena are unusual; a great calamity is imminent! I must leave immediately! Have you made up your mind? To stay or to leave?"

Lin Quan was intimidated by Chen Yue's urgent tone and the rare fierceness in his eyes. He looked up at the sky that was being swallowed by darkness, and panic finally overwhelmed all hesitation.

His throat tightened, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "Where...where are we going after leaving Youlin County?"

"Tianzhou Prefecture!" Chen Yue uttered three words.

Tianzhou Prefecture?

That was a prefecture far more prosperous and bustling than Youlin County, yet also much more distant and unknown.

Lin Quan's gaze fluctuated violently, and the struggle on his face intensified.

Finally, as if using all his strength, he asked the question that had been swirling in his mind, yet he dared not delve into it: "That—"

Chen Xuanli and his group—now—"

Chen Yue looked at him and made no attempt to hide anything: "He died by my hand."

Despite having suspected it beforehand, Lin Quan was still shaken to his core when he heard it confirmed by Chen Yue himself.

He looked at Chen Yue's young yet terrifyingly calm face, thought about Chen Xuanli's unfathomable cultivation, and considered the sudden upheaval that had occurred in the Chen family—

After the overwhelming shock, Lin Quan surprisingly felt a sense of relief, as if he had known all along, and his expression relaxed somewhat.

Lin Quan nodded emphatically: "I'll go with you!"

"good!"

Without further delay, Chen Yue stepped forward and took Lin Quan's arm. "There's no time to lose. I need to go back to my place to get some important things, and then I'll leave immediately!"

He took Lin Quan and quickly returned to Tingzhu Pavilion, where he packed up the small package containing the remaining pills and made sure nothing was missing.

Then, Chen Yue steadied Lin Quan with one hand and whispered, "Master Lin, hold on tight!"

Before he finished speaking, Chen Yue had already unleashed the Cloud-Soaring Thousand Steps, pushing his movement technique to its limit. Even with someone with him, his speed was still astonishing.

Like two wisps of smoke, they silently scaled the walls of Tingzhuxuan and sped off toward Shen Dujiang's hidden contact point in the slums of the western city.

Above, the sky was dark and gloomy, a cold wind howled, and the chill was biting.

Chen Yue led Lin Quan into that secluded courtyard.

Inside the courtyard, Shen Dujiang paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, his face filled with anxiety and unease.

Hearing the faint sound of the courtyard wall hitting the ground, he turned around abruptly, his right hand already on the short blade at his lower back.

When Shen Dujiang saw Chen Yue without a hat or mask, revealing his true face, he was clearly stunned for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

This was the first time he had seen Chen Yue's true face, a young face.

However, Shen Dujiang had been involved in the black market for many years and had a sharp eye. He immediately confirmed Chen Yue's identity based solely on his figure.

His self-illumination then fell on Lin Quan, who was still somewhat pale, standing beside Chen Yue, and looked at Chen Yue with a questioning gaze.

Without wasting words, Chen Yue introduced, "This is Lin Quan, Master Lin. I was able to refine pills thanks to Master Lin's guidance and instruction."

He did not elaborate on the specifics of Huichuntang, but he did point out the connection between Lin Quan and his alchemy.

Shen Dujiang suddenly realized that he was not surprised at all that Chen Yue had admitted that he had refined the pills.

In the past, whenever Chen Yue went to the black market to trade, he always had a unique smell on him that he couldn't wash off, a mixture of various medicinal herbs, which Shen Dujiang had already guessed pretty accurately.

Hearing Chen Yue confirm it in person, the last trace of doubt in his heart disappeared.

"So it's Master Lin! My apologies for not recognizing you!"

Shen Dujiang immediately put on a very enthusiastic smile, quickly stepped forward, cupped his hands in a greeting to Lin Quan, and spoke with undisguised flattery and a desire to make friends.

In Shen Dujiang's view, a master who could teach a prodigy like Chen Yue must have an extraordinary level of alchemy skills.

He's definitely a reclusive master! We must cultivate a good relationship with him!

Lin Quan was caught off guard by Shen Dujiang's sudden enthusiasm. He was still shaken and seeing Shen Dujiang's deep and focused aura, which clearly indicated that he was also a martial artist, he quickly waved his hand and said, "You flatter me. It is I who need your help. I am weak and have no martial arts skills. I'm afraid I will be a burden to you two on this journey."

Upon hearing this, Shen Dujiang laughed heartily and comforted him, "Master Lin, what are you saying! Everyone has their own expertise. You are a master of alchemy, and refining pills and making medicine is a skill that many people envy! It's perfectly normal that you don't know martial arts."

There is no such thing as a genius who is good at everything in this world.

Shen Dujiang stopped mid-sentence, as if he had suddenly remembered something. His voice abruptly ceased, his smile froze, and his eyes involuntarily glanced at Chen Yue, who stood calmly beside him.

It's normal for an alchemist to not know martial arts, but isn't this guy next to me a freak who is proficient in both alchemy and martial arts, and is ridiculously strong in both?

"We'll continue our conversation after we've finished our casual chatter!"

Chen Yue pointed to the sky, where the sun was growing increasingly dim, and the world was shrouded in twilight, as if night had fallen prematurely, exuding an indescribable eeriness.

Chen Yue said in a deep voice, "The celestial phenomena are unusual. The time that the Divine Flame Sect and Youquan Prefecture are waiting for is probably now. We must leave Youlin County immediately; we cannot delay any longer!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Dujiang nodded heavily: "I was anxiously waiting for you. I contacted a man named Hu Shaoyu with the guide. It is said that he traveled to Tianzhou Prefecture when he was young and is quite familiar with the route."

Time is too tight, and its reliability hasn't been fully verified yet. But given the current situation, we can't worry about that now; we have to take a gamble! Let's go find him now and leave the city immediately!

Chen Yue nodded in agreement and was about to speak when his expression suddenly changed slightly, and he turned his gaze towards the distant horizon.

A continuous, spreading gray-black mist, as if alive, rose from several locations in the central area of ​​the county town, quickly spreading out and merging with the gloom of the sky, making the entire Youlin County even darker.

The chilling aura in the air suddenly became thicker and more piercing as the black mist spread, with a faint, unmistakable mixture of a fishy sweetness and a burnt smell.

"Oh no! It's a cult's trick, they've started!" Shen Dujiang also saw the eerie black mist, and his expression changed drastically.

"Go!" Chen Yue made a quick decision and shouted.

Without further hesitation, Shen Dujiang turned around and rushed into the house, picked up a pre-prepared bag, and in a flash, he rushed out of the dilapidated courtyard gate and ran towards a certain direction in the west of the city.

Chen Yue supported Lin Quan with one hand and followed closely behind.

The three of them sped through the streets and alleys, which were beginning to stir due to the sudden change in the celestial phenomena, like three arrows released from a bow.

The streets were filled with the panicked shouts of the people, the cries of children, and sporadic collisions and disturbances of unknown cause, but large-scale unrest had not yet fully erupted.

The three of them kept walking and soon arrived at a dilapidated shantytown in the west of the city, stopping in front of a low mud-brick courtyard.

Shen Dujiang stepped forward and pounded on the rickety wooden door, making a dull "bang" sound.

"Who is it!" A hoarse voice, filled with vigilance and impatience, came from inside the courtyard.

"Old Hu, it's me, Shen Dujiang, open the door quickly!" Shen Dujiang said urgently in a low voice.

The wooden door creaked open a crack, revealing a thin face—it was Hu Shaoyu.

He squinted, warily eyeing Shen Dujiang outside the door, as well as Chen Yue with weapons behind him and the panicked Lin Quan, his expression relaxing slightly.

"Boss Shen? What's the rush?"

Shen Dujiang pushed open the wooden door and squeezed inside, speaking rapidly: "There's no time to explain. Pack your things immediately and come with us! Leave Youlin County for Tianzhou Prefecture!"

"Now? To Tianzhou Prefecture?" Hu Shaoyu was stunned upon hearing this, his face filled with astonishment and disbelief.

"Boss Shen, are you kidding me? It's pitch black, and the celestial signs are so ominous. We're not prepared at all. How are we supposed to get out?"

Shen Dujiang pointed at the sun in the sky, then at the gray-black mist beginning to spread in the distance, his tone urgent and angry: "Look at the sky! Look at that mist! The cult is about to begin the blood sacrifice! If we don't leave now, are we just waiting to die?!"

"Blood sacrifice?"

Hu Shaoyu frowned deeply. "Those are just rumors! Youlin County has so many powerful families, a county government, and garrison soldiers. Do you think those heretical cultists can really cause a hole in the sky?"

His words represented the mindset of the vast majority of ordinary people in Youlin County at that moment, and even many low-level martial artists.

When the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up; the major families and government offices are the tall people in their eyes.

However, having personally experienced the pursuit of a Marrow Refining Realm expert from Youquan Prefecture and knowing the strength of the heretical cult, Shen Dujiang felt a surge of anger rush to his head upon hearing these words.

He knew that explaining anything to someone like Hu Shaoyu, who lacked awareness of danger and still harbored wishful thinking, would be a waste of time.

Chen Yue stood aside, watching Hu Shaoyu.

He understood the person's thoughts; ordinary people who have lived in a stable environment for a long time can indeed hardly imagine disasters beyond their comprehension.

The black fog in the distance seemed to have thickened further. The strange smell carried on the wind became increasingly clear.

Shen Dujiang said in a deep voice, "How much money do you want before you leave now?"

Upon hearing this, Hu Shaoyu's eyes darted left and right: "One hundred taels, let's go now!"

Upon hearing Hu Shaoyu's outrageous demand, Shen Dujiang's face instantly darkened, and a flash of anger appeared in his eyes.